Ask the Pro with Bob Abdou – Texting

Today, Bob has changed things up a bit and HE is the one asking the question…

Texting

This weeks question actually comes from me, Bob Abdou. With technology changing rapidly, I wanted to pose a question to other entertainers who I respect and admire. Here are their edited responses to my question:

Parents and teachers have been texting right in front of me, full view, they are not hiding the fact that they are texting and I find it rude and disturbing.

I need your advise, should I have my introduction say something to the effect of no texting, should I say it at the beginning of my show, should I say nothing, should I just ignore it grab the check and get the heck out???

From Dale Brown – Ventriloquist/ Wisconsin:if in the beginning of your show you ask people to turn their cell phones off then there’s no harm in adding, and as a courtesy to others I’d also appreciate it if you’d postpone texting until the end of the show.

From Aurora Krause/BeBop the Clown/Texas:
I’d rather have them inside my show texting in case I needed them, than outside texting totaling unaware of the children they left me with.

David & Carol Carranza- Puppeteers/Texas:Look at your audience and pick one or more individuals who are really enjoying your show and perform for them. Mentally erase the unavoidable, annoying person from your psyche while performing, without allowing any trace of hard feelings on your part. You will have given a wonderful performance and no one will be the wiser of how you manipulated the situation to your advantage

Chris Clark-Puppeteer/Michigan:” THE MOST SUCCESSFUL PEOPLE ARE THE MOST FLEXIBLE PEOPLE “
Since they won’t change the behavior , just adjust to it. In this economy , we need to collect as much cash as possible.

Lee Bryan-Puppeteer/Georgia:I would take a deep breath and just know that is something I cannot control….the thing is, it is only a few folks.

Ian Verella-Ventriloquist/ Texas:Have some fun with it. If you are showing the kids a prop box or something you could say “everybody look closely inside this box . . . . . . even you moms and dads who are texting.” It will probably get a laugh and people will look around to see who is texting

Ron Lighty-Ventriloquist/Tennessee:Mention this in your contract

Steve Petra-Ventriloquist/New York:Most adults that I’ve had to confront for being distracting during a show were unaware of the effect they were having and were quite apologetic. We’re always walking a tightrope.

Tom Crowl-Ventriloquist/Maryland:If you can’t turn off your phone, please set it to vibrate and exit the
auditorium if you need to accept a call or text.

Bruce Weaver-Ventriloquist/Pennsylvania:We just have to carry on and try not to let it affect our performance, no
matter how ANNOYING, RUDE, DISRESPECTFUL, ETC it is

Lucas Miller-Children’s Performer, Author/Texas:I have had moments where I thought someone was playing a game or some such and, as it turned out, they were actually taking pictures because they were so excited to be there (this has happened with a couple of kids in recent months). Similarly, I’ve had adults on the phone and it turned out they were calling a friend to encourage them to come to my show. I try to assume the best and put it out of mind.

Rik Gern/Bonzo Crunch- Clown/Texas:I’ve also introduced a magic trick by saying, “and now I’m going to make something disappear”, and then, as an aside, say, “like that cell phone”! Talking on the phone is way more disruptive than texting, so I’m trying to learn to tolerate a little bit of texting, but I really hate it and find it extremely rude.

Linda Holliday-Ventriloquist/Pennsylvania:Before I start I will mention that all cell phones and electronic devices must be turned off during the show since I use wireless technology and there will be a major feedback problem. It usually works. Of course, you will find some people who will totally ignore you and keep texting. Not much you can really do at that point in a family or school show. I don’t want to alienate my audience before I even start.

Thanks to Linda for sharing this site about texting, very interesting, so I am not alone in this matter!!

Dan Willinger is a ventriloquism enthusiast and ventriloquist figure collector. He has been collecting for over 25 years. He created the Ventriloquist Central Collection. It now has over 100 ventriloquist figures and over 50 of them are Frank Marshall figures. Because of his love for the art of ventriloquism, Mr. Willinger created the website Ventriloquist Central. For more information about the website, go to:http://www.ventriloquistcentral.com

Copyright 2011 by Dan Willinger

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